GUSTAV HOLST
Holst - Orchestral Works, Vol 4 [Includes Symphony 'The Cotswolds'] Guy Johnston (cello), BBC Philharmonic, Sir Andrew Davis [ Chandos SACD / Hybrid SACD - released 14/Oct/2018 ] "Remarkably translucent SACD sound distinguishes this latest addition to a highly collectable Holst series. None of the music recorded here was published in his lifetime, but all of it is worthy of the attention of Holstians." CD Choice |
TIPPETT
Triple Concerto / Concerto for Orchestra Gyargy Pauk (violin) Nobuko Imai (viola) Ralph Kirshbaum (cello) / London Symphony Orchestra. Sir Colin Davis [ Philips Awards Collection / CD - released 8/May/2005 ] Gramophone Award Winner: Record of the Year / Concerto Award 1983 |
HELEN GRIME
Night Songs Hallé & Hallé Soloists, Sir Mark Elder & Jamie Phillips [ NMC Debut Discs / CD - released 17/Sep/2014 ] "The performances are a tribute to the dedication of Hallé players, whether in orchestral or ensemble guise, and have all been recorded with the spaciousness and immediacy which this music needs." (Gramophone Award Nomination 2015 - Contemporary) |
SIBELIUS
Symphony No 2 / Pohjola's Daughter / The Oceanides Hallé, Sir Mark Elder [ Halle / CD - released 6/May/2013 ] "under Elder, [Pohjola's Daughter is] a primal folktale rather than an urbane fantasy...[in the Symphony] Elder's elemental strength, relieved by a sense of light and space and the Halle's intense playing, help to make this highly recommendable." (BBC Mus |
HECTOR BERLIOZ
Berlioz: Benvenuto Cellini (complete opera recorded in 2015) BLU-RAY Dutch National Opera / John Osborn, Mariangela Sicilia, Maurizio Muraro, Michèle Losier / Sir Mark Elder (cond) [ Naxos Blu-ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 5/May/2018 ] "Osborn has all the vocal verve and dash to make the devil-may-care sculptor the constant centre of attention. Mariangela Sicilia uses her fearless, technically brilliant vocalism to sustain his beloved Teresa's vibrant personality…a musical treat" |
GEORG FRIDERIC HANDEL
Handel: Messiah (complete oratorio) Heather Harper, Helen Watts, John Wakefield, John Shirley-Quirk / London Symphony Orchestra & Chorus, Sir Colin Davis [ Philips / 2 CD - released 2/Feb/1988 ] "You can still enjoy Davis' lively and sympathetic direction, enthusiastic singing and playing by the London Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, two fabulous female soloists." Arkivmusic |
GUSTAV MAHLER
Mahler: Symphonies Nos 1 & 3 Helen Watts (mezzo-soprano) Wandsworth School Boys Choir & Ambrosian Opera Chorus / London Symphony Orchestra, Sir Georg Solti [ ABC Decca Australian Eloquence / 2 CD - released 20/Jul/2017 ] "As a combination of top-class recording, orchestral playing and conducting, this is one of the finest recordings I have ever listened to." Gramophone on No 1 |
W.A. MOZART
Die Zauberflote [The Magic Flute] (recorded 1937 & 1938) Helge Roswaenge, Tiana Lemnitz, Gerhard Husch, Erna Berger / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra / Sir Thomas Beecham [ Naxos Historic Great Opera Recordings / 2 CD - released 26/Jan/2008 ] "These singers, and the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, come through with unprecedented clarity in this new transfer by the gifted sound engineer Mark Obert-Thorn. The new reissue looks likely to replace them in the hearts of Mozart fans, offering a... |
DELIUS
Piano Concerto / Paris / Brigg Fair / etc Howard Shelley (piano) / Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Sir Andrew Davis [ Chandos / Hybrid SACD - released 15/Oct/2012 ] "Sonics are excellent for a standard CD." (AudAud.com) |
HAVERGAL BRIAN
Symphony no 1 in D minor "The Gothic" Hpnor Sheppard (soprano) Shirley Minty (contralto) Ronald Dowd (tenor) / BBC Symphony Orchestra & Choral Society, etc / Sir Adrian Boult [ Testament / 2 CD - released 10/Dec/2009 ] "Long available in a pirated recording of the broadcast, this live performance of the mighty Gothic has at last 'gone legit'." BBC Music Magazine, February 2010 *** |
BEETHOVEN
Eroica / Symphony No. 3 Ian Hart / Tim Pigott-Smith / Claire Skinner / Jack Davenport / Orchestre RACvolutionnaire et Romantique / Sir John Eliot Gardiner [ BBC / Opus Arte DVD / DVD - released 5/May/2005 ] G :- 'Ian Hart is brilliant as Beethoven, a volatile, magnetic figure of genius and uncouth charm…not to be missed.' -- Daily Mail |
SIBELIUS / ELGAR
Violin Concertos (recorded 1984 & 1993) Ida Haendel (violin) / City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra / Sir Simon Rattle [ Testament / CD - released 10/Oct/2009 ] "..it is Haendel's thoroughly personal input of humanity, expressive power, and her dynamic fusion of immediacy and profound insight that puts this performance in a class of its own. It is simply mind-blowing." The Telegraph, 28th July 2009 ***** |
MICHAEL TIPPETT
A Child of our Time (complete) Indra Thomas (soprano) Mihoko Fujimura (alto) Steve Davislim (tenor) / London Symphony Chorus & Orchestra, Sir Colin Davis [ LSO Live SACD / Hybrid SACD - released 1/Sep/2008 ] "There are emotional depths here which turn this recording into something very special." (Gramophone Editor's Choice September 2008) |
EDWARD ELGAR / LUDWIG van BEETHOVEN
Elgar: Cello Concerto / Beethoven: The Ghost... Jacqueline du Pre in Portrait Jacqueline du Pre (cello) / Daniel Barenboim / Pinchas Zukerman / Sir John Barbirolli / Philharmonia Orchestra [ Opus Arte / BBC DVD / DVD - released 1/Sep/2004 ] Jacqueline du Pré's extraordinary career was cut cruelly short by illness in 1973 when she was only 28 years old. When she died 14 years later, she remained as vibrant a figure in the public mind as she had been at the pinnacle of her career. |
RICHARD STRAUSS
Strauss, (R.): Don Quixote / Violin Concerto James Ehnes (violin) Daniel Müller-Schott (cello) / Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Sir Andrew Davis [ ABC Classics / CD - released 7/Jun/2019 ] The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and their Chief Conductor Sir Andrew Davis continue their acclaimed survey of the orchestral music of Richard Strauss, with this latest volume featuring three world-class soloists James Ehnes, Daniel Müller-Schott... |
HECTOR BERLIOZ
Berlioz: Harold en Italie / Reverie et Caprice, Op. 8 / etc James Ehnes (violin & viola) / Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Sir Andrew Davis [ Chandos SACD / Hybrid SACD - released 20/May/2015 ] The virtuosic and nine-times Juno-winning Canadian James Ehnes is centre stage in a new recording of orchestral works by Berlioz, with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra conducted by Sir Andrew Davis. This recording follows an extraordinarily rare... |
MERCADANTE / MOZART / DEVIENNE / CIMAROSA / BACH / VIVALDI / etc
James Galway plays Flute Concertos [12 CD set] James Galway (flute) / I Solisti Veneti, Claudio Scimone / The Academy of St Martins in the Fields. Sir Neville Marriner, with Marisa Robles (harp) [ Sony Classical Masters / 12 CD Box Set - released 20/May/2011 ] The Man With the Golden Flute, Sir James Galway, is featured in these classic recordings, with harpist Marisa Robles and clarinetist Sabine Meyer. |
J. S. BACH
Bach: St Matthew Passion, BWV244 James Gilchrist, Stephan Loges, Hannah Morrison, Zoë Brookshaw, Charlotte Ashley, Reginald Mobley / Monteverdi Choir, Sir John Eliot Gardiner [ Soli Deo Gloria / 2 CD - released 24/Feb/2017 ] "..a thoughtfully moulded, expertly executed and deeply committed reading, so honestly communicative of its intent and so free of self-conscious monumentalism, sententiousness or melodramatics...one of his finest achievements." Gramophone |
DONIZETTI
Mary Stuart (Scenes from the opera in English) Janet Baker, English National Opera Orchestra and Chorus, Sir Charles Mackerras [ Chandos Opera in English / CD - released 17/Nov/2001 ] Janet Baker made her last appearances with English National Opera |
DONIZETTI
Mary Stuart (Complete Opera in English) Janet Baker, Rosalind Plowright, English National Opera, Sir Charles Mackerras [ Chandos Opera in English / 2 CD - released 17/Nov/2001 ] Janet Baker made her last appearances with English National Opera |